Quest for a Lost Thief
by DiabloCat
Summary: My version of Skinner's heroic action, and how he got out of the place. Set in the bit where the League is attacking 'M's fortress.


A/N: Yeah, this has been done to death, I know. But every version is unique, right? So this is my unique version about how Skinner got wounded, then got out and recovered.

Rodney Skinner flattened himself against a wall, panting hard. The place would be blown to smithereens in a few minutes, and he didn't plan to be around when it happened.

Door, door...there had to be a door out! It was so much easier last time, when the whole flipping place wasn't tearing around trying to kill him and the rest of the League.

A soldier ran past, screaming wildly. Skinner took the opportunity to stick his foot out and trip the hapless man over. Before the soldier worked out what was going on, the invisible man picked up the nearest object and smacked him over the head with it. He grabbed the unconscious man's knife.

Skinner slipped past a pair of soldiers, who were obviously confused about the noises. Roars, screams, shouts – the whole caboodle.

Gunshots, awfully close, made Skinner pause and listen carefully. Those sounded a lot like Sawyer's pistols! Sawyer was young and reckless, but he knew how to shoot. And a bit of companionship wouldn't go astray either. It wasn't wise to be running around a building – stuffed with dangerous soldiers – naked and armed only with a dagger.

Quietly, feet padding softly along, Skinner made his way to where the shots had come from. There was no sign of Sawyer, but there was a door down the end, and he could see a flickering light at the edges.

He edged the door open – and was confronted with flames.

For a moment he was dazzled, confused as to where the flames had come from. They didn't just burst out of nowhere.

Then he saw Sawyer – and the peril his young companion was in. A strange thing was stalking towards the American. It looked like Ned Kelly with a flamethrower. And it was aiming that flamethrower at Sawyer. The boy had grabbed something, but Skinner doubted it would block the flames.

The invisible man didn't stop to think. He lunged forwards and stabbed at the fuel tank of the Ned Kelly thing, shouting, "Sawyer! Run for it!"

The thing whirled, dowsing him in flames. Skinner didn't realise what had happened at first. All he knew was that white hot, burning pain was EVERYWHERE! With a screech of agony he turned, and dashed blindly away, trying to escape the pain.

He was frantic. All he knew was the pain. It consumed his thoughts. He ran until he reached a corner and could go no further. Some part of his sane mind surfaced, screaming at him. 'You're on fire! Roll! Damn you, ROLL! PUT IT OUT!'

Skinner threw himself on the floor, rolling until the fire was out. The pain lessened slightly, but not much. He crawled backwards a little and collapsed with a whimper.

Sawyer heard the whimper, and came to investigate. Through a haze of pain, the thief heard his name. "Skinner?"

He opened his eyes and saw the young American staring at him with a shocked expression. The invisible man tried to croak something out, to reassure Sawyer that he was not dead. At least, not yet.

"That's the...last time I...play with matches."

Suddenly Skinner's eyes widened. He stretched out his hand in warning, but it was too late. The second invisible man placed his dagger at Sawyer's throat with a sinister chuckle. He pulled the boy to his feet.

"Come on, kid. This way. Say goodbye to your mate!"

Skinner watched helplessly as the American was marched off. His evil counterpart hadn't done anything to him. No doubt the guy felt that he was going to die anyway. He slumped back with a moan. Come to think of it, he wasn't so sure he'd live either.

Ah well, if he died, at least it had been for a good cause. And he'd done his task. This place would be going up in smoke in a matter of seconds. He just hoped the others made it out. Sawyer was a resourceful kid. Maybe he'd break free. Captain Nemo and Hyde were more than a match for anyone they'd meet. Mina was as scary as you could get. And Quatermain was a crafty geezer.

Suddenly, blast after blast racked the building. Even through his pain, Skinner allowed himself a grin. His bombs were going off. This place was a goner.

As he sank into blissful unconsciousness, Skinner heard, in the distance, a single shot. Then there was only darkness.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Sawyer stared down Allan Quatermain's body lying in the snow. He had decided the man deserved to be buried, so he had dragged him out of the smoking building. Tom swallowed, and wiped away the tears that coursed freely down his face. The gentle pressure of a hand rested on his shoulder. He looked up into Mina's sad face.

"He was a good man," boomed Nemo. "And he went the way he would have wished to go."

Jekyll gave a quivery smile. The battle had cost him dearly, but not as much as it had Quatermain. "That is true. Allan wouldn't have wanted to go peacefully."

"At least he's with his son now," whispered Sawyer. He tried to stay calm, but he couldn't. The same thought kept flitting through his head. It was his fault. If he hadn't let the guy take him by surprise, Quatermain wouldn't have had to turn his back, allowing 'M' to stab him. He should have been alert! Then the evil invisible man wouldn't have caught...

Wait. Invisible man. Sawyer turned his head this way and that, searching.

"Tom?" asked Mina in surprise. "What is it?"

"Skinner! Where is he? Did he make it out?"

Nemo bowed his head. "No one has seen him. I fear we may have lost two dear friends."

"No!" shouted Sawyer. Skinner couldn't be dead. Not the sly, cheery thief as well.

"Tom..." Mina started to say soothingly, but the American interrupted her.

"He might still be alive. I've got to go back for him."

"That's out of the question, boy," barked Nemo.

"You don't understand! It's my fault! It's always my fault. I'm the reason Allan died. If it weren't for me, he'd still be here. And it's my fault Skinner's still in there. As long as there is a chance he's still alive, I've got to go back. He risked his life for me. The least I can do is return the favour."

"Skinner risked his life?" asked Mina.

"YES! I've got to go!" Sawyer turned to go back, but Nemo grabbed his arm.

"Let me go!" shouted the American. "I'm going..."

"Yes," agreed the Indian. "But we're coming with you."

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

"Skinner," hissed Sawyer. "Where are you?"

They couldn't be too noisy. There were still guards and soldiers running around everywhere.

"Skinner?" called Jekyll in a low voice. He felt slightly guilty. He had accused the thief of stealing his elixir. Understandable, yes, but he should have known better than to accuse without proper proof. If the invisible man died, Jekyll would never have been able to apologise.

All of the League were struggling with feelings. They all felt guilty for blaming Skinner. He had seemed the most likely candidate, being a thief by nature. But they should have known that inside lay a good heart. He had put his life on the line to scout out the enemy's territory, then yet again to go and position the bombs.

In the end, it was Sawyer who found the wounded spy. He lay where he had collapsed. Tom would have found him sooner, but fallen rubble had changed the layout of the building.

"Skinner!" However, there was no reply.

"Oh my," breathed Mina as she saw the extent of the invisible man's injuries. She knelt next to him, and gently rested a long finger on his wrist.

"Is he alive?" whispered Sawyer, voice tight with worry. Skinner couldn't be dead. That would be two who had perished for him. And he didn't think he could live with that.

There was a pause. "Yes," said Mina at last. "But he's badly burnt. If we don't treat him soon, he may not last."

Just then, Skinner regained consciousness slightly. Blurry figures were standing above him, murmuring to each other. Pain coursed through his body. He shifted a little, and moaned.

"Skinner?" Was that Mina? He couldn't tell. Everything sounded strange, like he was underwater. He blinked, trying to clear his vision, but it didn't work.

The vampire lady was concerned. Skinner had burns everywhere. It was like someone had poured fire on him. Then again, according to Sawyer, that was exactly what had happened.

"We've got to get him back to the Nautilus," she said out loud.

Nemo and Sawyer looked at each other. "I don't suppose you have a stretcher?"

"I'm afraid I don't. We will have to move him manually."

Nemo knelt on Skinner's left, Sawyer on his right. "I'm sorry," whispered the American. He was sorry for the pain he had caused him. And he was sorry for the agony he was about to put him through.

They both grabbed an arm, and hauled the thief to his feet. Skinner gasped as a sharp ache shot through his body. He stiffened – then went limp.

"Skinner!" cried Sawyer in alarm. "Oh God! Someone please tell me he didn't just die."

Mina checked the thief's pulse again. She sighed in relief. "He's alive. Just unconscious." She straightened. "Now let's go!"

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

The atmosphere upon the Nautilus was tense. It had been three days, and the invisible man's condition had changed constantly. Sometimes he seemed much better, other times he was at death's door.

He had never awoken properly, merely emerging from unconsciousness from time to time, mumbling something incomprehensible, and then lapsing back into darkness.

Mina and Jekyll worked tirelessly to keep Skinner alive, as well as tend to the other injured fighters. Nemo directed the Nautilus to Africa, where they would bury Allan Quatermain. Tom mourned his fallen friend, helped out on the ship and kept bedtime vigil over the wounded spy.

On the fourth day, Sawyer was dozing in the chair, when he heard a low groan. His head snapped up, and he turned to Skinner, who was lying on the hospital bed. You could see the thief fairly well, due to the amount of bandages on him. The doctors had also smeared a white paste on his body, so they could see which part of him they were treating.

"Skinner?" said Sawyer.

The invisible man turned his head to the right, wincing with pain. Tom could see Skinner was still a bit dazed.

"S-sawyer? Where the...hell am I?"

"In the Nautilus."

"The Nautilus?"

Sawyer bit his lip. Did Skinner lose his memory? "Yeah, Captain Nemo's ship, remember? Big, silver, weird decorations?"

"Yeah, I know. But – aren't I supposed to be dead? This sure ain't heaven or hell."

Sawyer chuckled. He couldn't help it. "No, it's the Nautilus. Sort of in between. You're not dead. Came pretty close, though."

"Oh. Fair enough." Skinner was quiet for a moment. "You came and got me, didn't you. I remember...a few things. People. So unless a bunch of snowmen dragged me to this ship, you lot came back." Another pause. "Thanks."

Tom smiled. "I owed it to you. You saved me from the flamethrower."

"Oh yeah? Fair enough. Don't 'spect me to do it again though. Too bloody painful, this life-saving business."

Tom laughed. "Allan was right. All this time, pretending you're just a gentleman thief, then you go and save lives."

"That reminds me! 'Ow are all the others? They all make it out in time?"

"Everyone – except Quatermain." Tom sighed at the memory of the lost hunter. "He was killed."

Skinner raised his eyebrows. He felt an odd pang at the thought of the stuffy old man. "Bugger. So where're we 'eading?"

"Africa. For his funeral."

Skinner nodded, and then regretted it as his head throbbed. "Oww. Yeah, he'd like being buried back there. Home is where the 'eart is, right?"

"Yeah."

They both sat or lay in silence for a while, thinking about all that had happened. The struggle, the betrayal, the pain, and the loss of those they cared for. It was Skinner who broke the silence.

"So – when do I get a drink?"

THE END!


End file.
